Of Bjd Fashion: Simple T-Shirt Outfit for Our Yosd Boy Part 1

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After far, far too long, Anna has made some clothes for us. Specifically for Makoto, our only yosd boy doll.

His new outfit consists of a t-shirt with longish sleeves, a simple pair of elastic waist shorts, and a sensible pair of socks. They are a touch on the plain side for my taste, but Makoto seems happy with them.

Simple as they are, basic pieces are still necessary for all doll wardrobes, so I have persuaded Anna to produce tutorials for these pieces.

First up, is how to sew a basic yosd sized t-shirt.

Yosd Sized T-Shirt Tutorial

Material needed:

• T-shirt (or jersey knit) material, old t-shirts and other knit clothing works well.
• Matching thread
• Basic Sewing Supplies
• (Optional) Sewing Machine
• Velcro or snaps
• (Optional) Embellishments, like small buttons or ribbons.
• (Optional) Patience

Here's the pattern. It includes the patterns for the t-shirt as well as shorts and socks, but those will come later. The t-shirt is made exactly the same way as my Msd sized t-shirt tutorial. If you've made those before, then this will be a breeze for you. If you haven't then please check out my tank top video tutorial, it demonstrates some of the techniques need to sew these shirts. Plus, it's fun to watch. 

Cut out the pieces from your t-shirt material.

With right sides together, pin the back pieces to the front at the shoulders and sew across.

Now get the sleeves and hem them.  You only need to fold once to hem since t-shirt fabric doesn’t unravel. 

And if you are sewing by hand, be sure to sew using a back stitch (as demonstrated in the video), so the hem will be able to stretch without snapping threads.

Once hemmed, you can carefully pin on the sleeves and sew (using the back stitch again).  I say carefully because if you don’t pin carefully around the curves of the sleeve and shoulders, then the ends won’t match up.

It is a good idea to try the shirt on your doll to make sure it fits well at he shoulders.  Re-sew if necessary.

I find it easier to stick the pins in this way when sewing curved pieces, how about you?

Once sewn, it is helpful to cut little notches in the seam allowance as shown, this keeps the fabric from puckering when you turn it right side out.

Anyway, with the shirt right side out, take the collar and fold it in half long ways.  Then, carefully pin it along the edge of the neckline.  Once pinned, sew on using a back stitch.

After sewing, turn the collar and top stitch (back stitch again) to keep it nice and flat.  You may feel the need to cut off some of the excess fabric.

This is a good time to add any decorations or embellishments to the front of the the t-shirt.

Now‘s the time to do the side seams.  With right sides together, pin along the sleeves and down the sides.  Be sure to try the shirt on your doll before sewing it down.

After turning right side out, fold and hem the edges of the back opening.

Now fold and hem the bottom of your shirt.

Try the shirt on your doll to decide where to add the Velcro or snaps, and attach accordingly.

And now your t-shirt is finished.

Stay tuned for part 2 to learn how to make the rest of this cute outfit. Look forward to it.

Give it a try:

• Loops & Threads Start-to-Sew Kit
• VELCRO Brand Recycled Sew on Tape
• Loops & Threads Sew-On Snaps

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Doll Owner’s Corner: Bjd Events

First of the month, time for another Doll Owner’s Corner (after missing the last few months).  When I, the doll owner, talk about anything I want.

This month’s topic:

Events

The first time some people hear about an event for a doll company or dealer, they may wonder “what is an event?”  The short answer is that it’s a big sale.  We all know what that means when it’s a grocery store or department store.  The prices on some things go down for about a week to get people to come in the door.

The difference is that bjd events tend to last about a month, and sometimes longer.  I’ve seen ones that were extended an extra month.  Giving more time to make your choice.  :)

There are various ways for you to save on dolls during an event.  Some companies will reduce the price by about 10-12% or even more.  That’s how I got both Usagi and Sakura here (in this older photo). 

Mystic Kids was having an event for 10% off all their dolls, so I bought Sakura from the Junky Spot (check out her unboxing).

Doll Family A had an event that included 20% off their msd sized dolls plus a free gift!  So, I ended up ordering Usagi through Alice’s Collections (check out her unboxing).

Events occur throughout the year and usually coincide with holidays and seasons and such. 

For example, Misako was bought at nearly 50% off clearance as part of the Junky Spot’s annual Black Friday sale (check out her unboxing).  Several of my other dolls were purchased during Summer events. 

Other occasions for events include Christmas/Winter, Spring Festival (aka. Chinese New Year), New Year’s, and company anniversaries.

Now, in addition to dolls being “on sale” during events, you do sometimes get freebies with your purchase depending on the company. 

For example, Doll Love regularly has events where their dolls are about 10-15% off with a free face up.  That’s how I got Yuna here (check out her unboxing), with her adorable default face up.

Kids Sky has similar free face up events.  They were having one for Christmas, so I got Momoko (check out her unboxing).

Other things you might get for free are other dolls or doll parts. 

As some of you may remember, Yuki started out as just a floating head I got for free when I bought Usagi (that free gift I mentioned).  Some companies will give you free (or reduced price) jointed hands with a purchase, and some more (relatively) pricier companies will include small sized bjds as a gift.

One fun thing about bjd events is that it isn’t just the doll companies that have them, but also the dealers.  I mentioned before that Junky Spot has their Black Friday sale, but Alice’s Collections regularly has nice events.

For example, I’ve taken advantage several times of events at Alice’s Collections where you can order a pair of their glass dolls eyes for only $1 with qualifying purchases.

And for more fun, Alice’s Collections frequently have events to get cute pet dolls for super low prices with a qualifying purchase.  That’s how I got Shiro.

And the deals can usually be stacked.  For example, if a dealer is having an event where you can buy a cute pet doll for $1 if you buy a SD sized doll, and a particular company on their site is also having an event where you can get a free yosd sized doll with the purchase of a SD sized doll.  Then you can buy your SD doll, get the freebie doll and throw on that cute pet doll.  That’s what I call a great deal.

I’ve mostly been talking about dolls, but all those cute bjd accessories go on sale too.  

I bought all these doll wigs at 10% off with free shipping during an event from Alice’s Collections (man, I buy from them a lot).  They also have similar deals on clothing, usually on new styles.

I got these cute little yosd sized shoes for Sakura and Yuna when they were 10% off, they were shipped for free too.

And that’s just a small sample of the fun of bjd events.  Of course the best part is always after the event has ended.  When your order has shipped, and your package has arrived and is waiting for you to unbox your new doll!

Happy shopping everyone.

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Alice’s Collections Shopping Haul: Doll Clothes, Eyes and a Stand?

This post was suppose to go up several months ago, but I never could get around to it until now.  So pretend it is still March when you read it.

Anna placed a smallish order on the fine online bjd store, Alice’s Collections.  There were just a few items we needed for a few particular purposes.

Within two weeks, the package arrived at our door.  Anna thought this was rather quick, however I would have preferred a speedier delivery.

Anyway, let us see what is inside the box.

First, there is a cleaning sponge included as a gift from the store.  These have been wonderful to have on hand.  Sakura is prone to making a mess of herself and Usagi isn’t much better.

(You’re pretty messy too, Hikaru.)

Now this is wonderous piece, it’s a simple white button-down shirt (also available in black) for Yuki.

A simple, yet classic piece with crisp collar and nicely make cuffs.  It is fairly well made for the rather low price.

It was purchased specifically for Yuki as a present for his birthday next month.  It looks wonderful and hopefully it will look just as fine on him.

And it does, much nicer than his t-shirts in my opinion.  The msd size seems to fit him well enough (Check out the dolls’ profile page for Yuki’s measurements, the shirt is available in several other “sizes”).

Next is something more casual, this pair of pink sneakers.

They were purchased for Usagi for her birthday as well.  I can’t say I particularly like them, but I’m positive Usagi will adore them. 

They are fairly well made though.   With decent topstitching, evenly spaced grommets, and sturdy looking lacings they should hold up well.

And as expected, Usagi is quite happy with them, mostly due to their coloring.

“They are so cute! :)”

They fit quite well, much better than the last pair of shoes purchase for her (see Bjd Unboxing: Doll Family H Body and Shoes?).

Both Usagi and Yuki seem quite content with their gifts.

Now for something wonderful, my new petticoat!

Yes, I have simple be dying to have one of my own for so long.  And because my own birthday is coming soon, Anna added it to her order.

(It’s available in black or white and in SD and Msd size.)

It looks so much fuller in person than on the website, but will it be effective?  Let us see.

Here is my fine skirt without any petticoat.

And now, here it is with my new petticoat.  The difference is almost alarming.

My skirt looks so beautiful and I simply cannot wait to try this with some of my favorite dresses. 

There is, however, a downside to all this new volume.

It certainly takes up a bit of space.

“Oh my, your skirt is so huge, but it’s cute too! :)”

“…what happened?…”

And now an important purchase, a pair of glass doll eyes.

Alice’s Collections was having a special event.  If you purchased certain items you could then purchase a pair of eyes of your choice for only $1, a real bargain of a price.

Not wanting to pass up this deal, Anna purchased a 12mm pair in pink for our small cat doll who was still in need of eyes.

Here is our tiny cat without eyes…

…And here she is now.  She can finally see!

And she keeps staring at me.  Why is see staring at me?

“She thinks your skirt is huge too. :)”

Now the final purchase, a doll stand.

Anna has been eyeing this doll stand for awhile.  She has mentioned many times about the little problem we dolls have with standing still for the camera (See this doll bloopers post).

She is hoping this stand will be of some help.  We shall have to test this idea.  However, that will be for another post.

For now, we will all continue to enjoy our new pieces.

Be at peace my dear readers.

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